The first thing to get right when cooking a holiday turkey is your turkey size. This can seem intimidating if you don't often buy whole animals by weight, but a simple rule of thumb helps: Expect to cook about 1 1⁄2 pounds of turkey per serving. If your guests especially love your turkey recipe, you can bump that up to two pounds.
For boneless turkey, the rule is 1⁄2 pound per serving. For example, feeding six people plus two portions of means eight servings total, or a 12-pound turkey — 16 pounds if your recipe is irresistible and people will be tearing the turkey up. Add two or so pounds for , and you're looking at a 14- to 18-pound turkey.
If this sounds like a lot, remember that these are pre-cooked weights. Like other meats, turkey loses a lot of its mass as it cooks — as much as 60% for a whole bird. That said, don't plan on more than two pounds of meat per serving.
Remember that the turkey will be for precious stomach space. Sizing the right turkey for your guests and your oven It's important to size your turkey right not only for portion control but also for the oven. Modern ovens tend to be large enough to easily handle 20+ pound turkeys, though older ovens or ovens in smaller kitchens may be more constrained.
If oven size is a concern, you can use your roasting pan to size how large of a turkey it can take. If your oven can only fit a small roasting pan (about 14 inches), don't go above a 12 pound turkey. A 16-inch medium roasting pan can take turkeys up to .
